


Shivering in the Sand

by draculard



Category: The Simpsons
Genre: Airplane Crashes, Desert Island, Enemies to Friends, Ficlet, Huddling For Warmth, M/M, Mild Hurt/Comfort, WWII, Wilderness Survival
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-12
Updated: 2019-09-12
Packaged: 2020-10-14 22:37:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 278
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20608481
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/draculard/pseuds/draculard
Summary: It's not like Abe likes Private Burns any better here. If anything, the deserted island makes him hate Burns even worse.





	Shivering in the Sand

It’s not that Abe likes Private Burns any better here. If anything, the deserted island makes him hate Burns worse than ever.

At night, he can see the wreckage of his plane from his makeshift shelter, and though he’s terribly exhausted and wants to sleep more than anything, he can’t seem to close his eyes. Burns has no such issue; he sleeps on the sand beside Abe, his slim form curled tightly in a ball, his head pillowed on Abe’s folded uniform blouse.

Unlike Abe, Burns is fully dressed. The island is dreadfully hot and humid during the day, but at night it’s as cold as winter back in Springfield. It hits Burns worse than Abe; he’s almost skeletally thin, with no muscle or excess body fat to keep him warm. 

Even now, he’s shivering as he sleeps. 

_ I’m glad the bastard’s suffering,  _ Abe thinks, scowling out at the dark sea. He hugs his knees to his chest and feels dry granules of sand scraping at his chin.  _ It’s all he deserves. _

But his eyeballs are itchy and his limbs are heavy with the need for sleep, and when he finally sprawls out on his back in the sand, he can feel Burns shaking next to him, and the sensation keeps him awake. 

So out of irritation — _solely_ out of irritation — Abe rolls onto his side and slings an arm over Burns and pulls him close, so that the burning warmth from his own chest seeps into Burns’s skin. 

When the shivering finally subsides, Burns lets out a little, sleepy sigh.

And Abe, eyes finally closing, doesn’t remove his arm. 

_ It’s more comfortable this way, anyway, _ he thinks.


End file.
